13 Weeks!

Hellllooooo second trimester!! 

I don't know how I forgot to post our Facebook announcement. See below: 

How adorable is he?! 

We just celebrated our 1 year anniversary although, we didn't do much to celebrate. Matthew has been working A TON and I know he's stressed so I didn't want to make a big deal out of our anniversary knowing he would be thinking about work the whole time we were out doing something. My MIL put together one of his favorite dishes and I baked it for dinner on Saturday night. Although I was sound asleep when he got home at 10:30 I am pretty sure he enjoyed dinner! We did relax together yesterday after Matt got home from work (I feel like that was the first time I'd seen my husband in a week) and went out for fro-yo yesterday evening.

I feel so incredibly bad that he is as busy/stressed as he is, knowing there really isn't a lot I can do to help him or make him feel better. He has a lot of work but doesn't have the man power to get it all done by his deadlines. Luckily he just hired 2 guys on full time and another guy part time so I hope that helps lessen his load a little bit. He is such a hard worker and sometimes I don't know how he does it!!  <3

We have a lot of fun events coming up in the next few weeks and I hope he's able to enjoy himself a little bit because he truly deserves it! My BIL's girlfriend (hopefully SIL someday!) is graduating from nursing school, wahoo! She invited all of us to her graduation party next Saturday. Sunday is Mother's Day - I can't wait to celebrate with a baby in my arms!! The next Friday (5/17) we have our 3D ultrasound, beyond excited about this. The next day we have our friend's sons 1st birthday party and our sweet nephew's 2nd birthday party!! Where does the time go!? 

We originally were going to surprise ourselves with a baby outfit at a special dinner on 5/17 but Matt mentioned that he felt like we would be missing out on seeing our baby move around during the ultrasound if there were parts we couldn't watch so we decided that we'd just find out boy/girl AT the ultrasound. We also invited our parents to come since we will probably only have 1 more ultrasound after this and wanted them to experience at least one ultrasound with us, if they wanted. My mom and Matt's parents were thrilled to have been invited and I hope they're just as excited as we are for 5/17! We will announce to the rest of our family the next day at Ben's birthday party (As long as Marie & Joe are ok with it, although I think Marie is pretty excited). I think we'll go for the balloons in a box and since Ben is the man of the hour we'll let him open the box to let the balloons go. That way any family there will find out and we'll have something fun to show (my) family and the rest of Matt's family later on. We'll announce to our friends after we tell the fam on Saturday.

Now for the 13 week Baby Dickson update!! 

How far along? 13 weeks 2 days!  

How big is baby? Baby is the size of a peach! 

Total weight gain: I can never remember what my doctor's scale says but I've been checking myself on my own scale since I found out we about our wee one. I've officially gained 3 pounds. Yikes. 

Maternity clothes? I can still wear my stretchy jeans but am using the hair tie method in order to avoid buttoning them. I am wearing maternity jeans on occasion and just ordered a few more tops from target as I am in that "is she/isn't she" stage and it makes me self conscious so I still like to hide that area if possible.

Stretch marks? nope
Sleep: Wonderfully!
Best moment this week: I made it to 2nd tri! I know some people say 2nd tri is 13w3d and some people say it's 14 weeks but I say it's 13 weeks (and so does Dr. B) and I made it!!!!
Miss Anything? I am not even about to pretend I don't miss alcohol. I wasn't a big drinker but I definitely enjoyed my glass of wine/beer. I miss Pacifico. I miss margaritas. I miss wine. I miss SANGRIA!! I wasn't really even a huge sangria drinker prior to pregnancy but that's all I can think about now. I'm considering making some with the alcohol free wine.
Movement: Not yet! I can't wait to start feeling it! Some of the girls on my bump Facebook board have started feeling it and I hope I start feeling it soon! I love listening to his/her heartbeat on the doppler and hearing her move around!!! 
Food cravings: No cravings to acknowledge other than Sangria.  
Anything making you queasy or sick: Nothing in particular making me nauseous and I am hoping and praying that Saturday (13 weeks) was my last day of nausea. I was feeling really lousy, like back to how I was feeling weeks 6-9. Yuck.
Gender: 11 more days until we find out for sure!
Labor Signs: No!
Symptoms: Some nausea, bloat, potty problems (sorry), peeing a lot, exhaustion! 
Belly Button in or out? Innie!! 

Wedding rings on or off? On and loose!
Happy or Moody most of the time: Still super happy! Getting kind of emotional too.
Looking forward to: Our 3D gender scan is in 11 days! Anatomy scan is in about a month!! 

The Word is Out

Since the word is out for the world to know, I suppose it's time to update the blog. And maybe now I'll be able to keep it up to date... for a while anyway. 

WE'RE PREGNANT! 

That's right, Baby D arriving November 2013!! I'm incredibly excited and nervous and happy, thrilled, amazed... 

Thankfully I'm starting to feel better. No one ever told me morning sickness was such a b*tch. Or maybe they did and I just never thought it would happen to me so I ignored them. Well don't ignore me when I tell you, morning sickness is a B*tch with a capital B. So glad it's getting better and I can really start looking forward to things to come. 

I wanted to do weekly bump pictures starting at 8 weeks but since I was so nauseous that didn't happen and even though I'm starting to feel better, it still hasn't happened. I think I'll start at 13 weeks. But for now here's my weekly bumpdate: 

How far along? 12 weeks 2 days! 

Total weight gain: Although I feel like I've gained 10 pounds, no weight gain yet. 

Maternity clothes? Maternity pants (so much more comfortable) and I ordered some tops but am sending them back because I don't love them. I'm running out of flowy tops to wear! 

Stretch marks? nope
Sleep: Sleeping very well aside from getting up to pee 3-4 times a night!
Best moment this week: We had out NT scan today and the tech said everything looked great! We should get the bloodwork back in just a few days. It was awesome getting to see our little boy/girl moving around. We even got a wave! The tech said that if she HAD to guess she'd guess we were having a little girl. Just a few more weeks until we find out for sure! :)
Miss Anything? I just found out today I can't eat brats and I'm already missing them. Also, we went to a graduation part over the weekend and Sangria was served so I miss that and margaritas too!
Movement: No movement yet, I did find out that I have an posterior placenta so the tech said that is good for being able to feel movement sooner! I can't wait!!
Food cravings: Cravings have been lasting about 10 seconds right now so if I can't get a milkshake, cookie, chicken fried rice within that time frame it's over and usually ends up sounding kind of gross. I guess that's not a bad thing.  
Anything making you queasy or sick: Still feeling a little nauseous at night but it's tons better than it has been!
Gender: Elective gender scan is scheduled for 5/17! A few more weeks and we'll know!
Labor Signs: No!
Symptoms: Slight nausea and exhaustion are the most prominent right now. I've had a few headaches lately which I've heard pop up in second tri. 
Belly Button in or out? Innie!!  Wedding rings on or off? On and loose!
Happy or Moody most of the time: Happy 90% of the time!
Looking forward to: Our gender scan in 3 weeks and our anatomy scan in June! 

Here are some pictures we got today: 



 Baby D waving to his/her mama and papa!! <3













 
 According to the Nub Theory Baby D's "nub" is flat/parallel with his/her back which makes her a girl - If it was pointed up at an angle he would be a boy - Just a few more weeks until we find out for sure!! 

I should also mention that Matthew has been AMAZING these past 12 weeks. I knew he'd be pretty awesome but I had no idea the extent of his awesome-ness. I mean, just last night I was laying down on the couch perfectly capable of getting up and getting my own water and popsicle but I was feeling slightly nauseous and my throat was REALLY hurting so he came all the way downstairs (ok- so it's really not that far) and got me a popsicle and a glass of water. It made me feel really lucky that I have such a great husband who's willing to do anything for me even if it means interrupting his work to bring me snacks. :) 

Oops...

I'm slowly entering my blog hoping you guys are still here. I haven't made an update since JUNE. Ahh! I feel like a horrible person, but I've been super busy, not to mention now that I have nothing to plan I feel like I have nothing to post! I need to change this way of thinking.

Here's what we've been doing...

June: Weddings
July: Vacation and weddings
August: Wedding
September: Catching our breath
October: Wedding and baby showers
November: Being an aunt and uncle to TWO new babies.

Here's what's coming up...
December: WEDDINGS!

If you haven't caught on, 2012 has been the year of weddings! We have another this coming Saturday and will finish the year with a wedding on New Year's Eve! This year has been incredible and has also gone by so fast! I can't believe we've been married for almost 7 months already. It doesn't seem real. In the coming year we're going to get very serious about becoming home owners so we're in save-every-penny mode right now. We started looking at homes over the summer but we didn't find anything that we really fell in love with and being as indecisive as we are we wouldn't have felt comfortable making an offer on anything we don't love.

Here's the last 6 months in pictures (these are kinda out of order, sorry):

 Here we are with Tyler watching the first OSU game of the season!

 My niece Hailey turned 8!

 We took a cooking class (so much fun)!

 Gracie was born

 Here we are at a wedding

 Alden was born

 The family in HHI

 HHI with my love

 Hanging out with our nephew Benjamin

Last dinner in HHI and it was amazing!

I've also decided that Matthew and I don't take nearly enough pictures SO my goal for next year is to take one picture a day and then I'll make a scrap book of 2013 at the end of the year. I really wish I would have thought to do this from the day we got married, that way we would have had an awesome scrap book of our first year of marriage. Oh well, you live and learn. Won't make that mistake again. 

And in preparation of taking one photo a day, I'm off to play with my new camera so I can get really good at taking pictures of us!

We're Married!!!!!

We're married.... and one moth later I finally update my blog! :)

It has been a busy (and awesome) month. Married life is wonderful... and pretty much exactly the same as not married life - for us anyway!

Our wedding was absolutely perfect! I had an idea in my head of how I thought everything should be and would be.... and everything was one million times better than I could have ever imagined.

I started the day off bright and early - breakfast with Kelli and her husband - Thanks for buying my breakfast, Matt! :) Kel and I went back to my house and waited for our ride to pick us up. I was nervous that I was forgetting things and that my dog was going to be left unattended - thanks for coming to hang out with him Cyle! After we left my house we went to the Worthington Inn to get ready! I was pretty calm and not nervous about this whole wedding thing if I do say so myself! I was a nervous wreck the week leading up to the wedding *sidenote: I was not at all nervous about the marriage, just the wedding so I am very surprised my nerves went away the day before! We had lots of baked goods and snacks - mimosas included - while getting ready. Once all the girls were finished we made sure the guys had finished getting their outdoor pictures taken and we headed out for some bridesmaid pics! The Monday before our wedding I met with our photographer at the Worthington Inn so we could get some ideas for pictures and we really got some great shots! We set up a really cool first look so Matt and I could see each other before the ceremony.

After we finally saw each other the day just went by so fast. We finished bridal party pictures and then walked over to the church for formal family pics. After the pictures we had to go into hiding because it was almost time for the ceremony! Still no nerves! Finally, 4:30 rolled around and it was time for the main event! Everyone made it down the aisle in one piece although my shoe did almost fall off. :0/ Our ceremony was nothing short of perfect! Our Pastor personalized it in a way we never thought possible and finally getting to say our vows and exchange our rings was a dream come true!

The ceremony was short and sweet and before we knew it we were at the Venue ready to party the night away! I love that we got to enjoy cocktail hour with our guests... it was nice to be able to mingle with them right after the ceremony was over so we're definitely very happy that we got all of the formal pictures out of the way before the ceremony! Everything went off without a hitch at the reception and our room was so perfect! The Venue has a rustic/warehouse type of feel but with our tables decorated the way they were it gave it more of a formal feel and was just awesome. We definitely partied the night away... we had such a great time, and we think our guests did as well! I know people say this ALL. THE. TIME, but the day really does go by incredibly fast. Time flies when you're having fun! After the reception we went back to the hotel for a few drinks with our friends before calling it a night.

The day after our wedding we had a very special one year old boy's birthday party to attend. It was great to see lots of family the day after the wedding and hang out with my new sister and brothers AGAIN! We had a great time at Ben's party and then it was back home to pack!

We left early the next morning for our honeymoon in Ft. Myers Beach, Florida. We stayed at the Pink Shell Resort and would definitely recommend it to anyone headed that way! We loved that it wasn't super crowded during the week and wasn't far from dining and shopping. We spent most of our days lounging at the pool or the beach which was amazing! We were definitely due for a vacation! The best part about our honeymoon was our candlelit dinner on the beach. Just the two of us under an umbrella with nothing but the waves and the sunset to bother us. It was truly amazing and something we will never forget!

A week later reality hit and we were back home in Ohio. I feel like my tan faded as soon as I got off the plane! :) It was nice to be home and get settled into married life!

We weren't home for long before we left again. This time for CHICAGO! We went to visit some of our very favorite people! I love that we got to spend an entire weekend with Marie, Joe, and Benjamin. It was super relaxing and nice to be able to spend time with family we don't get to see as often as we'd like! The highlight of our trip was getting to see our nephew Ben take his first steps!!!!!!! I am so happy we were there for that!

Our next trip is about a month away, so excited for a family vacation! Another week of relaxing on the beach... what could be better? But for now, we're just hanging out, working a ton - especially Matthew! I took up cooking - it's still a work in progress. The thing I like least about it is having to go to the store to get things I don't already have, and figuring out what to make!! It's not easy... thank goodness for Pinterest!!

There you have it, my month in a blog post! I'll leave you with some pictures!

Rehearsal Dinner

 The girls with my groom

Me with the guys 

 Waiting for my Soon-to-be-Hubby

First look

Our Vows <3

Reception :)

Goin' to the Chapel...

... In SIX days!!!!

I honestly cannot believe our WeDDing wEEk is FINALLY here! After 15 months of planning our thoughts, ideas, and dreams are coming to life!

All weekend I've been thinking about how crazy (and exciting) it is that this is the last week with my current last name. This is the last week that I'll be wearing one ring instead of two. It's the last week that Matthew will be without a ring! In less than a week I'll be a wife and I'll have a husband - an amazing one at that! THIS TIME NEXT WEEK I'LL BE MARRIED!!

Planning our wedding has been amazing, fantastic, crazy, stressful, wonderful, scary, humbling, and overwhelming at times but I would not change anything about it if I could and I absolutely cannot wait to see how it all comes together next week!

We have had such an amazing support system throughout this process and I don't know how I'm ever going to thank our family and friends enough for their love and support. We have such thoughtful, kind, loving (and creative) people around us and we would not have been able to plan what I know will be the most beautiful and perfect day of our lives without their help!!

I have a busy week ahead of me... my To Do List is growing! But for every stressful moment I have this week I know they will all be well worth it when the clock hits 4:30 on May 5, 2012. I can't wait to be married to the man of my dreams, to the person who makes me whole, to my soul mate!!!

I have found the one whom my soul loves.

                                              Song of Solomon 3:4

Oops...

I am a terrible blogger. I know this. You don't have to tell me!

My last post was back on March 6th just as we were getting ready to send invitations out! Well, the invitations are out, and we've gotten most of our response cards back already!

The past few weeks have been incredibly busy though and I'm loving every second of it. I've been to 2 baby showers, 2 bridal showers (my own) and my bachelorette party! I feel as though these events have prepared me for the main event in T minus 23 days!! I can't believe how fast time has passed!

I've been swimming in wedding stuff and although I LOVE planning our wedding, Matthew and I are ready for it to be here! I'm wondering what I'll do with my time when I'm not meeting with vendors or calling make up artists, choosing hair styles and bridesmaid shoes, picking out groomsmen suits and ties, deciding on scriptures and program wording. Whatever will I do with myself after May 5th? Blog more? I'll work on it.

I have to say, I feel so lucky to have so many wonderful people who are willing to have me delegate to-do items to them and help make our day perfect!

Here are some pictures from my pre-wedding weekend of fun!

 These signs were made by my FSIL! Love them! 

 My niece, Shai, with me at shower #1

 All of my beautiful bridemaids! 

 At my Bachelorette Party! Soon to be Mandy Dickson!

A shower gift from my FSIL, again, so creative! I LOVE these wreaths! 

Eek!

We have less than 60 days until our wedding! 59 to be exact!!

I'm so excited I almost can't stand it. I am also getting REALLY nervous! I do not like being the center of attention and it makes me really nervous to think that all eyes are going to be on me when I'm walking down the aisle!

I have two bridal showers coming up in less than a month and my bachelorette party too!

In the next few weeks we have birthday parties, bridal showers, and baby showers... I'm a busy girl! But it just makes the days go by that much faster and gets us that much closer to May 5th!

My dress fittings are underway and I got a call last week that the bridesmaid dresses should be ready for pick up this week!

I bought a new pair of wedding shoes because the ones I originally bought were starting to scare me!!! I do still need to find bridesmaid shoes and Kelli and I are going to do some online shopping this weekend to see what's out there!! We're also working on getting the guys suits picked out.

Invitations are almost finished (there was a slight hiccup with the amount of ribbon provided) but I expect them to be completed on Thursday night and in the mail on Friday!!



I also have a fantastic idea for table numbers that I plan on tackling this weekend! I hope they turn out like they're supposed to!!!

I just really can't believe that we are finally almost there!!! Can't wait!!!!!


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